


We Can Burn (Brighter Than the Sun)

by CaliforniaQueen



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst with a Happy Ending, Based on We Are Young by Fun., Closet Sex, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Wall Sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-15
Updated: 2020-06-15
Packaged: 2021-03-03 22:34:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,495
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24703135
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaliforniaQueen/pseuds/CaliforniaQueen
Summary: A one shot for the Reylo Jukebox exchange 2020
Relationships: Rey & Ben Solo, Rey & Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Rey/Ben Solo
Comments: 18
Kudos: 32
Collections: Reylo Jukebox Exchange





	We Can Burn (Brighter Than the Sun)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [QueenOfCarrotFlowers](https://archiveofourown.org/users/QueenOfCarrotFlowers/gifts).



[Moodboard by EmrysTargaryen](https://archiveofourown.org/users/EmrysTargaryen/pseuds/EmrysTargaryen)

He’d been gone for six months.

He’d left her—told her he didn’t want her and she had believed him. It wasn’t until Snoke, that thinly veiled mob boss he’d been working for, was found dead and the newspapers broke the story that she realized Ben had been lying about everything. His job, his identity, his reasons for leaving her. Rey hadn’t known what to think. She had just started to heal—to get over him. 

At least that’s what she told herself. 

And now here he was in this bar, out of nowhere, shocking the hell out of her and hovering over the man who was attempting, unsuccessfully, to chat her up while she waited for her drink. 

“Hey. Asshole,” he said. “Get away from my wife.”

“Woah. Hey, sorry. I don’t want any trouble. I’ll see myself out.” The stranger held up his hands and backed away leaving Rey Solo gaping at her wayward husband Ben, who just looked smug. He turned back to her and was about to speak when he felt the sting of her open palm across his face.

“Ow. Fuck, Rey, what was that for?” Ben grabbed the drink the bartender set down in front of Rey and held it to his jaw. 

“You know what? You’re lucky I didn’t punch you in the dick. Your wife. Are you fucking kidding me right now? You lied to me, you son of a bitch. You fucking lied, Ben. What did you expect? A welcome home party?” 

She snatched up her purse and stood up to leave, but he reached out and grabbed her arm. Rey gasped at the shock of his touch—the first in months. She never thought she’d feel his touch again. Her eyes immediately burned with unshed tears and she turned to look at him. 

“I had to, Rey. To keep you safe. It was my job. I couldn’t have it hurt you.”

“So you chose to do the hurting instead. You were supposed to keep me safe? Who was supposed to keep me safe from _you_?”

Ben jerked as if she had slapped him again. Her aim was straight and she hit her target. 

Somehow, it was less satisfying than she thought it would be. 

“Rey, please. Just let me explain.”

Rey looked at him then, seeing something she never expected to see. He was nervous...afraid even. More than that, she could see her own pain reflected back at her in his eyes. He was hurting. Maybe not as much as she was, but the hurt was there nonetheless. It was the only thing that made her look past the anger and agree to let him talk. 

“Fine. You have ten minutes. Talk.”

“Here?”

“The clock is ticking, Solo.”

“Shit. Fine. Ok,” he ran his hand through his hair in just that way that always made her smile. She didn’t want to smile right now. She didn’t want to give in, no matter how much she wanted to throw her arms around him and just let him hold her. 

She did, however, let him pull her back down to her seat at the bar. He moved his stool closer to her and took a deep breath, letting it out between pursed lips.

“It was never supposed to go this far,” he began. 

“What? Your job? Or us?”

“If you’re going to time me, maybe don’t interrupt,” he gave her that cocky grin of his that made her want to scream. She glared at him and raised an eyebrow, challenging him to continue. 

“I was an agent with First Order Intelligence. My team was assigned to keep tabs on Snoke and his dealings. We knew he was responsible for a lot of shit, but couldn’t catch him doing anything. He was slippery. So, I was assigned to go undercover.”

Rey was stunned. When he had left, his argument that “it just isn’t working” had hit home. Everyone always ended up leaving in the end. And so she had believed him. Now she didn’t know what to believe. “You told me you were a lawyer. That you worked in a law firm handling Snoke’s business dealings. You lied.”

“I had to, Rey. I was in too deep. And he was dangerous. The things he did...I wasn’t even supposed to…” he trailed off and ran his hand over his face, wincing as he passed over the red mark on his cheek. 

“To what?” Rey wasn’t sure she wanted to know the answer. 

“To get involved with anyone. It was against the directives. I had a job to do and couldn’t afford the distractions. But then I met you, Rey, and I couldn’t help it. You were everything I’d ever wanted. And I fell in love with you. That was real. It was always real. I thought I’d be able to have you and the job and keep both things separate.”

Rey bit her lip and looked down at her hands clasped tightly in her lap. It took an immense amount of strength to keep from bursting into tears. She wanted to be anywhere but there at that moment. She attempted to stand up and he reached out again. 

“Please, Rey. Let me finish.”

“I can’t do this. They’re watching.” She nodded in the direction of their friends, Rose Tico and Poe Dameron sitting with Finn Johnson. All three immediately turned to each other and began to speak simultaneously, not fooling anyone into thinking they weren’t trying to figure out what was going on.

“Let’s go somewhere private,” he said, taking her hand. 

“I don’t think that’s a good idea, Ben,” she said. Her heart had already increased its rate at his touch. She was afraid if they went anywhere private, her carefully built wall around it would crumble. 

“I still have five minutes,” he pleaded, his eyes staring into hers. She sighed, nodded her acquiescence, and allowed him to lead her through the bar, past the restroom, into an unlocked supply closet. 

The moment Ben shut the door behind them, all the air seemed to be sucked out of the tiny room. Rey turned around to find there was barely any space between them. One step was all it would take to press her breasts against him and feel the hardness of him crushing her. Her nipples tightened in response to the thought and she absentmindedly worried her lower lip with her teeth as she waited for something to happen. 

Ben tried to stay focused, but the flush on Rey’s cheeks, the smell of her perfume, and the way she nibbled at her lower lip all made keeping his hands to himself the hardest thing he’d ever done. Cursing himself for his stupidity he reached out and gently touched her cheek, his heart stuttering as she closed her eyes and leaned, infinitesimally, into his touch. 

“Rey,” he breathed.

“Just tell me why,” she shuddered and he could see she was on the verge of crying. He’d been the one to make her cry for six months. He knew it. And it killed him. 

“He found out. He knew who I was, but he didn’t know about you. I had to leave to keep you safe.”

“You could’ve told me. You could’ve taken me with you.”

“I couldn’t do that to you. Upend your entire life because of me. You had your work, your friends…”

“None of it mattered without you,” she whispered. “You hurt me, Ben. It hurt so much…” she was crying for real then, hot tears streaming down her face. Ben swore and gave up trying to fight the urge to hold her. He pulled her to him and held her as she sobbed, whispering reassurances to her. 

“Never again, Rey. I’m out. I’m out for good. I quit as soon as I heard about Snoke. I don’t want any of it without you, baby. Please, Rey. Please don’t cry.”

“I’m afraid to believe you,” she said. The hurt and betrayal had been overwhelming. To think it could happen again took her breath away. 

“I’ll do anything and everything for the rest of my life to prove that I love you everyday. I’ve already turned in the paperwork and left. I left as soon as I could get to you. I’m never leaving you again. You’re half of my soul, Rey. I’d die without you.”

She kissed him then. He could taste the pent up sorrow, rage, and frustration on her lips and he held back for a moment, afraid she would hit him again. She pulled back and looked him dead in the eye.

“If you ever lie to me again, I’ll hunt you down and make you wish you hadn’t. Understood?”

“Yes,” he whispered, his voice tinged with hope. 

“Damn you, Ben,” she said and kissed him again. This time, her kiss tasted of urgency and relief, and when her tongue slipped in his mouth, he drank up her desire like a man dying of thirst. “Touch me,” she whispered against his lips. “I’ve missed you so much.”

He kissed her again and moved his hand down the front of her dress, lifting her skirt to reach between her legs. His thick finger slid inside her soft folds, a familiar place that Ben found easily. 

At his touch, Rey went wild, reaching between them to unbuckle his jeans and frantically fumble for his cock while she rode his finger and felt her arousal surge inside of her. 

“Slow down, baby,” Ben said to her, moaning as her hand wrapped around his length. “Are you sure you want to do this here? What are we going to tell everyone out there?”

“I don’t care what anyone thinks or says or does, I just want you. Right now. Please, Ben. Don’t you think I’ve waited long enough?” Her kiss that punctuated the question shattered any last shred of restraint he had and he grabbed her hips, rucking her skirt up higher. 

“Give me a second, Rey. I need a story. I need…” 

“ _We_ Ben, _we_ need to get our stories straight.” She gasped as he hitched her leg up and roughly pulled aside her panties, amazed at how the fabric was soaked through. He positioned himself at her entrance, waiting. 

“You’re right. Together,” he groaned into her neck. “They aren’t going to believe it.”

“They’re higher than a fucking kite right now and drunk to boot,” Rey breathed. “They’ll believe whatever we say. We’ll deal with the rest later.” She pulled his hips toward her in silent permission, her eyes fluttering closed as he slid inside her wet heat. 

“Do _you_ believe me?” he murmured in her ear, his tongue flicking out to tease her pulse point. He smiled against her skin as she moaned in response. “That I’m sorry and that I was wrong?” He began a slow pattern of deep and shallow thrusts, building the tension between them.

“Is there a reason I shouldn’t?” She fisted her hands in his hair, pulling him away to look in his eyes. “I mean, other than the fact that your lies were full of holes?”

Ben shook his head and continued moving within her. Her hands moved to his shoulders, bracing herself to get a bit of leverage. “You know I never meant to hurt you, Rey. I couldn’t tell you everything. Snoke…”

“Shh. I’ll be fine. It’s over. He doesn’t matter to us anymore. I get it now. Just, ah, keep going.” Her grip on his shoulders tightened as he kept up his pace. 

“I still love you. I’ve always loved you. Even when we were apart. You’re…everything, Rey.”

“I love you too. I never stopped. Even when I hated you I loved you.”

“Ahhh,” Ben moaned at the feel of her sliding onto him. It had been so long since he’d been with her. She felt like coming home. “When I saw that fucking asshole from across the bar, those stupid sunglasses of his, trying to touch you, I wanted to kill him. I just…”

“I know. You,” she gasped as she reveled in his slow, rhythmic pull and thrust, “you weren’t very subtle.”

“You light a fire inside me, Rey. I’ll never be able to let you go again. Everything is darkness without you.”

“Oh, Ben.” Rey knew what he meant. His touch was a flash burn, brighter than the sun, consuming her, but always leaving her wanting more.

“I know I’m not the best for you, baby, but I just thought…”

“What if I think you are? The best for me, I mean.” She crashed her lips onto his in a searing kiss. Her tongue in his mouth drove him crazy, making him impossibly harder and wilder for her. 

“Then we can work it out,” he breathed against her mouth. “We can find a way together.” He felt like he was going to fall apart inside her at any moment. 

“I won’t lose you a second time, Ben. I can’t.” 

“You won’t have to. I told you, I’m done. Snoke’s gone. It’s over.”

“Then stay with me, Ben. Love me.”

“I’ll always love you. Rey, let me take you home with me. Let me spend forever inside you, sweetheart. You’re my favorite place.” 

“Oh god,” she moaned, “you keep fucking me like this and my legs are gonna give out. You’ll have to carry me home.” 

“Wrap ‘em around me, baby. Hang on tight.” He grasped her hips and pushed her hard against the closet door as she did what she was told, digging her heels into his backside as he drove into her. 

“Oh god, please, Ben.”

“Shh. They’ll be coming back and looking for us soon.”

“Just a little more, Ben. Just. Oh. God. Right there. Yes!” He felt her clench hard on his cock, her moan a siren’s call leading him over the edge to oblivion. 

* * *

When they left the supply closet, after putting themselves back together, they noticed that Finn, Poe, and Rose were still relaxing at their table, nursing drinks that had long been watered down with time. If they were surprised to see Rey and Ben holding hands, obviously back together, they didn’t say anything. It had been a depressing six months for all of them, watching Rey slowly fall apart without Ben. Instead they smiled and ordered another round, toasting to new beginnings. 

Rey and Ben knew it wouldn’t be easy. It would be hard work overcoming all the lies of omission and the hurt it caused. It would take time. 

But tonight? Tonight, they were young, and in love, and on fire for each other. It was a crackling burn set alight by a spark, their smolder never truly dying down. 

So by the time the bar closed, and Rey was so tired and felt like she would collapse from exhaustion, Ben took her home. He had carried her in his heart for so long—carrying her home was effortless.


End file.
